Buhari signs Executive Order on voluntary Foreign asset declaration

President Mohammadu Buhari has signed the 2018 Amended Executive Order

008 on Voluntary Offshore Assets Regularization Scheme (VOARS).

Special Assistant to the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister
of Justice on Media and Public Relations, Umar Gwandu, disclosed this on
Thursday in Abuja.

“As a result of stakeholders input and need to strengthen implementation
mechanisms and structures, the Order was reviewed.
“Consequently, the Amendment to the Executive Order 008 was signed on
May 20 by President Buhari.’’

He said the Executive Order 008 as amended mandated the Attorney-General
of the Federation to set up and implement a Voluntary Offshore Assets
Regularisation Scheme otherwise referred to as `VOARS’.

“VOARS gives all relevant persons and their intermediaries who have
defaulted in declaration of their offshore assets the opportunity to
voluntarily declare and regularise their offshore assets, subject to
fulfilment of the terms and conditions stipulated in the Order and other
subsequent regulations.”

Mr Gwandu noted that in order to ensure seamless exchange of
information, VOARS will work closely with the Nigeria Financial
Intelligence Unit (NFIU) which has worldwide access to relevant
financial information.

“The government hopes that relevant persons amongst Nigerians, their
entities and intermediaries will seize the opportunity provided by VOARS
to declare and regularise their offshore assets before it is too late.

“Relevant persons who voluntarily declare their offshore assets and pay
the stipulated levy to the government will receive compliance
certificates which allows them to use their residual assets freely
without hindrance.

“The recoveries accruing to the government will be used for essential
infrastructure development for the benefit of Nigerians’’.